Artificial intelligence and automation will require 16.2 million (approx. 1.6 crore) workers in India to reskill and upskill while also creating 4.7 million new technology jobs, research by ServiceNow and Pearson has found.
Job postings in India that require ServiceNow platform technical skills grew 39% in the past year—the fastest in the world, according to labour market data from Lightcast—with Bengaluru seeing the highest demand for talent of any city, globally.
India's digital skill ecosystem is also poised to grow, with ServiceNow's research revealing that additional application developers (75,000), data analysts (70,000), platform owners (65,000), product owners (65,000) and implementation engineers (55,000) will be needed by 2027, to meet the tech deficit.
The research by ServiceNow analysed the current status of India's workforce, impact of AI and automation across industries and roadmap to how stakeholders can equip the workforce with the relevant digital skills to bridge the demand supply gap.
"India's decision makers and industry stalwarts understand the potential of AI. The pace of progress has never been swifter, with businesses driving large‑scale transformation across diverse industry sectors that will play a decisive role in India's rise towards a $1 trillion digital economy," Kamolika Gupta Peres, managing director of ServiceNow Indian subcontinent, said.
Reskilling Talent For In‑Demand Roles
While AI and automation's influence will reshape a substantial number of repetitive and technical jobs, many workers in non‑technical roles possess abilities that can be applied to high‑quality and more technical work profiles, the research suggests.
For example, the research found that India's deep-sea fishery workers possess 64% of the skills typically required of helpdesk support agents using the ServiceNow platform. Areas with high concentrations of fisheries, such as Kerala and West Bengal, can harness such opportunities and fulfil careers for such people.
The research predicts that manufacturing will witness the biggest disruption, with 23% of the workforce primed for automation and skill augmentation, followed by agriculture, forestry and fishing (22%), wholesale and retail trade (11.6%), transportation and storage (8%), and construction (7.8%).
AI's Multiplier Effect
The impact of AI and automation is expected to necessitate 4.6 million workers to augment their capacity between now and 2027. Even traditional technology roles such as computer programmers—which the research shows will be impacted by the rise of generative AI capabilities like text to code—can reskill to become flow automation engineers, product owners, implementation engineers and master architects. India's tech hubs, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Telangana, which have the largest concentration of computer programmers, can gain a significant competitive advantage.
The shifts illustrate the positive effects AI and automation can have on India's growth, particularly in terms of multiplying productivity and creating high‑value jobs.
"The macro environment dictates that business focus on delivering clear value in the digital economy. Building strong digital foundations will also help your people build skills today that will be needed in the future," Peres said.
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